Yosuke dropped everything he was doing when he received a text from Yu that said ‘help’ and nothing else. He texted back a quick 'where’ while rushing down the stairs to Junes’s first floor (the elevator was far too slow), abandoning his shift without even telling his dad. He’d worry about the fallout later.

'Floodplain’ was Yu’s reply. Yosuke unchained his bike, hopped on, and pedaled like his own life depended on it. Yu hadn’t given him any details, so his mind was filling in the gaps with more and more extreme situations his partner could be in. He’d fallen in the river and couldn’t swim. A flirty girl was being too forward and he needed an escape plan. One of the feral cats had given birth and the kittens would need homes. Some school bullies couldn’t take the bowl cut anymore and decided to something about it with force.

Yosuke arrived at the flood plain in record speed. He scanned the area, but saw no sign of his partner. Yu would stand out, as tall and gangly as he was.

He whipped out his phone and sent another text, praying that Yu was in a situation in which he could text. Yosuke glanced over the river, rationalizing that he couldn’t text and drown at the same time, so that couldn’t be it… Distractedly, he looked at the sky. A few lazy clouds were drifting across the sky. One of them looked kind of like a popped collar.

After shaking his head to clear it, he rode his bike to the gazebo area. He knew Yu often met people there. No one was there right now, and there were no signs that anyone had been there today. Not even a candy wrapper left on the table.

It had been at least a minute since he’d sent the text and there was no response. In his growing worry Yosuke did what anyone would do in his place: he called instead.

“Come on, come on,” he hissed at the phone, as if that’d make Yu answer faster. Yu’s ringtone played faintly on the other end of the line.

Wait.

You weren’t supposed to be able to hear the ringtone.

Yosuke whipped his head around, seeking the source of the sound. He tracked it to a big tree near the gazebo. The ringtone stopped sounding out as the call went to voicemail. Yosuke looked around, but Yu wasn’t in immediate sight, and Yosuke didn’t find his phone lying among the grass. Though there was a cat relaxing against the base of the tree. It flicked its tail lazily as Yosuke stared at it. No… There was no way his partner had turned into a cat!

All of a sudden, something pinecone-sized fell out of the tree, missing Yosuke’s head by mere inches. It landed with a thunk on the ground. He picked it up. It was Yu’s phone.

Frowning, he shaded his eyes against the sun and looked up, and there was Yu, clinging like a koala to one of the highest branches of the tree.

“What the hell partner,” Yosuke called up to him. “What are you even doing up there?”

“A cat… stuck…” Yu’s voice was barely audible, and it trembled with a quality Yosuke had never heard before.

Yosuke glanced down at the relaxing cat. It was definitely on the ground and not stuck in a tree. “This one?”

“I climbed up to help it…” Yu explained slowly. “But then… It jumped down on its own… A-a-and now…”

It was hard to see from the distance, but it looked like Yu was grimacing.

“You’re stuck,” Yosuke concluded.

“…yeah.”

Yosuke considered the situation. He was pretty damn high up. He wouldn’t be able to jump down without hurting himself. And the way Yu was trembling–the wind picked up and he clung even tighter to the branch he was hugging as it swayed–he wouldn’t be able to climb back down the way he’d come up. He was just too afraid. Yosuke knew if he climbed up there himself, well, then there’d be two boys stuck in a tree. And the added weight wouldn’t be good for the branch.

He was considering calling the fire department to get a ladder when a simpler solution came to mind.

“Let yourself fall,” Yosuke called. “I’ll catch you.”

Yu opened his eyes to peer down at him. Yosuke held his arms invitingly open. “N-no,” he whimpered. “It’s too far… I’ll miss, a-a-and break my neck.”

“Do you trust me?” Yosuke asked.

Yu squeezed his eyes shut. A moment later, he whispered a soft, “yes.”

“Then,” Yosuke said, “trust me. I’ll catch you.”

Yu shivered on the branch, making it sway a little. Then, very slowly and mechanically, he sat up. “R-ready?” he asked.

“Ready!” Yosuke called back, positioning himself right under his partner, arms open and ready.

Yu hesitated for a long time. Then he sighed, closed his eyes, and let himself fall. Yosuke caught him with an oomph, staggering back a few steps from the impact.

But Yu was all right and in his arms. Yosuke tried to set him on his feet, but he wasn’t budging. Yu buried his face into Yosuke’s chest. It made Yosuke want to smooth down his windswept hair, but his hands were occupied.

“You okay?” Yosuke asked softly.

“Was scared,” Yu mumbled into his chest.

Yu was outside the Dojima residence. It was a beautiful day, that twilight of the season where it wasn't quite spring and wasn't quite summer but a happy medium of the two. Inaba, he supposed, wasn't half bad. Would be better without the murders, of course, but he couldn't let the investigation worry him every day. Sometimes you just had to take a break and smell the roses pet a cat.

"Hey partner!" called a familiar voice. Yu looked up from where he was crouched and blinked in surprise.

Yosuke was riding his bike, feet off the pedals, letting it coast down the street towards Yu and grinning in that cheeky way of his. "Check this out!" he said.

All of a sudden Yosuke pulled up on the handlebars. The bike's front tire lifted from the ground. The wheelie attempt ended in failure as the bike suddenly toppled over. Yosuke was ejected violently from his seat, sliding painfully against the asphalt several feet before grinding to a halt.

Yu reacted quickly, rising to his feet, ignoring the cat's yowl of protest at him for not petting it anymore, and rushed to Yosuke's side. "Are you all right?"

A stream of curses was Yosuke's reply. If he could swear that much, he was probably okay?

"Yeah," Yosuke confirmed when he got it all out of his system. "Glad I didn't hit my head."

While he was bringing his hand up to his head, Yu caught a flash of blood on his wrist. He grabbed Yosuke's arm and turned it over to inspect it. Sure enough, the skin on the side of his hand was torn where it had scraped against the ground and it was seeping blood.

"Come inside," Yu ordered, and Yosuke didn't protest when he was pulled into the Dojima residence.

In fact, he was quiet the whole time when Yu began treating the wound with a first aid kit. He'd mostly skinned his hand, but a sharp rock had pierced his palm too. After rinsing it with water at the kitchen sink, Yu applied alcohol to disinfect it. Yosuke hissed at the sting, but bit his tongue and endured it.

After drying it gently with a cloth, Yu bandaged up Yosuke's hand. When he was done, he applied pressure here and there, making sure it wasn't too tight or too loose. Still holding the injured hand, Yu said softly, “Be more careful next time. I don’t want to bandage you up again.”

Yosuke looked sullen, more disappointed than resentful. He didn't say anything.

"You could've broken something," Yu went on. "I don't want to see you hurt." He began to stroke the back of Yosuke's hand with his thumb. Yosuke's fingers curled a little.

A moment later, Yosuke finally spoke. "I was just..." he began. He stopped with a sigh. "Nevermind."

Yu squeezed his fingers lightly. "What is it?"

"Just wanted to..." Yosuke mumbled, bowing his head. "Impress you."

"With a totally sick wheelie?"

"...yeah."

There was a contemplative moment of silence after that. Then Yosuke lifted his head, eyes glinting. "It would've been cool if I'd been able to pull it off, though, right?"

"Yosuke," Yu chided, but he wore a lopsided grin.

"Right? Right?"

"I'd be more impressed," Yu said, "if you took better care of yourself." He lifted the injured hand pointedly.

After a long, long day of retail hell, Yosuke came home to this.

Have a holly, jolly Christmas~~~

As soon as he heard it, he screamed. His scream was so loud it probably carried to the Ito family residence all the way down the road.

Soon Souji was rushing in from another room. "Yosuke?" he asked. "Are you okay?"

It's the best time of the year~~~

"Why," Yosuke growled, drawing his fingers down his face like claws. "I listened to this crap all day at work, so why, why, are you willingly playing it here!?"

Say Hello to friends you know~~~

"Because..." Souji said slowly, "it's Christmas?"

"I don't care, I don't want to hear it!"

Souji watched him for a moment without blinking. Then he nodded his head. "Okay," he said.

He headed into the kitchen and soon there was blessed silence. Yosuke sighed in relief. The migraine he had wouldn't go away soon, but this would help.

Souji returned with an apologetic smile on his face. "Sorry," he said. "I just wanted to set a mood, since it's Christmas and all."

"No, I'm sorry," Yosuke said, shaking his head. "I shouldn't take it out on you."

"Rough day?" Souji moved around him to help him take off his heavy winter jacket.

"Yeah," Yosuke said, shrugging out of the jacket. "You don't need to know the details."

"You can tell me anyway. You know I'll listen."

Yosuke flashed him a brief smile. "Maybe later."

He tried to step forward, intending to head to the bedroom and get changed into something more casual, but found Souji hugging him around his waist.

"Souji?"

"What can I do," Souji said, "to get you in the holiday spirit?"

"Uhh... Do I really need to be in it? I mean," Yosuke rushed on to explain, "we're Japanese, we don't really do Christmas—"

"Daaaaad!" called Kichirou, and a moment later the boy joined them at the entryway. He was wearing a Santa hat that was a little too big for his head and some cheesy holiday clothes.

Seeing how Souji was hugging Yosuke, Kichirou quickly joined in by hugging his dad's legs.

"Welcome home, dad..."

"Thanks, Ki-kun," Yosuke said, "but uh... can you two let me go now?"

Kichirou stepped away only to tug on his hand. "Come on, Dad, look what me and Uncle Seta did today!"

Kichirou led him into the living room, which was suddenly decorated in all manner of Christmas. It hadn't been this way this morning. Pictures of cartoonish angels with trumpets were on the wall, bell-patterned streamers hung from the ceiling, a 2-foot tall fake tree stood next to the TV, which was covered in blinking lights, and the couch had a red and green throw over its back.

"Do you like it?" Kichirou asked.

Stunned in his surprise at the sight, it took Yosuke a moment to answer. "Uh, it's great," he said. "I can tell you two had a lot of fun."

"We baked cookies, too," Souji said, walking into the room with a bowl in his hand. Yosuke noticed then that Souji was wearing an ugly-as-sin green sweater with a cat on it with text that said, of course, 'Meowy Christmas.'

"Uh, yeah?" Yosuke ventured. Come to think of it, the house did have a nice homey baking scent in the air.

"Yeah!" said Kichirou. He reached for the bowl in Souji's hand. Souji 'nuh-uh'ed at him and held the bowl out of his reach, making him pout.

"Let your dad have some first," Souji said. He offered the bowl to Yosuke.

Yosuke peered inside and found red, green, and white frosted ball cookies. "What, are these a different type of strawboball or something?"

"Mintoballs?" Souji said. "I don't know, I didn't really think of a name. They have peppermint in them. You see how they're striped, like candy canes?"

"Oh, that's different," Yosuke said, taking out a green one. The striping wasn't done that well, making it look more marbled than anything. It was probably Souji's first time making them.

"It might be too minty," Souji warned.

Yosuke shrugged and popped it into his mouth. The taste was strong and nostalgic somehow, though he couldn't quite place why.

"So, uh," Yosuke said after finishing the cookie, "it's Christmas but uh... I mean, I didn't get you guys anything, like gifts." He glanced at the little tree, noting that there were a few boxes under it.

"That's fine," Souji said. "I didn't warn you that we were going to celebrate or anything. It's our first Christmas together, though, so I thought we should at least get into the spirit and decorate."

"Geez," Yosuke said, feeling more than a little embarrassed. "You're so cheesy sometimes."

"Speaking of cheese," Souji said. He left for the kitchen and returned with a tray of cheese bricks and sliced meat. He put it on the low table. "I got this cheap at the grocery store. I think they were trying to get rid of them. Sit down and let's snack out!"

Yosuke took a seat and speared a cheddar block with a toothpick.

Kichirou took a seat on the floor and peered over the selection. "We need crackers!"

"Oh, right," said Souji. "Be right back!"

Nibbling on the cheese, Yosuke mentally shook his head. He hadn't expected this at all when he'd come home. Honestly, after that stressful day at work, he'd planned to take some headache meds and conk out. But now his raging headache was just a faint pulse at the back of his head. It might even go away by the end of the night.

Maybe all he'd needed was some love and festivity.

Kichirou had been munching on a cheese block too. He made a face and tossed his half-eaten block back on the table. "That one's gross," he said.

With a curious frown, Yosuke speared it and put it in his mouth. "Oh," he said, chewing thoughtfully. "It's Swiss cheese."

"Blech!" Kichirou said with extravagant overreaction.

Yosuke tossed a mintoball at him. "Here, get the flavor out of your mouth with this."

"No way, Dad!" Kichirou said. "Minty cheese? That's even worse."

"Here," Souji said, returning from the kitchen and placing a tray of crackers next to the meat and cheese. "This'll do the trick." Kichirou took three crackers and put them all in his mouth at once.

Souji joined Yosuke on the couch and turned on the TV with the remote.

"Oh, oh!" said Kichirou through a mouth full of crackers. He swallowed then continued, "Are we gonna watch it now?"

Yosuke glanced at his son curiously, then looked at Souji, who was nodding.

Souji smiled at Yosuke. "Kicchan told me you can quote this entire movie from memory."

"Oh my god, I know exactly what movie this is going to be..." Yosuke began to grin. "It's your first time here with us but you sure know our family holiday tradition."

"I haven't seen this," Souji said. He leaned back on the couch and pressed the play button on the remote. "So this is going to be fun."

Yosuke couldn't wipe the grin from his face as the opening to the Featherman rendition of 'A Christmas Carol' began to play. Kichirou grabbed a blanket and joined the men on the couch, snuggling himself comfortably between them.

"You know," Yosuke said, "when this first came out, Ki-kun watched it every day for a week straight. Sometimes twice in a day."

"Umm," said Souji hesitantly. "Nice?"

Yosuke chuckled, knowing Souji didn't care for Featherman. It was a surprise he was willing to watch this with them now, but he figured Kichirou had probably begged him for it, and no one could resist that.

Kichirou giggled, and then the movie finally started. Both Yosuke and Kichirou simultaneously said the opening line: "Black Condor was not a humbug. But his heart told a different story..." The narrator followed just a fraction of a second later.

The movie was just as ridiculous as Yosuke remembered, but sharing it with Souji made it different. Despite his professed disinterest in Featherman, Souji got into it, asking Kichirou what was going on. Kichirou explained it as well as he could, but without the full lore, Souji was probably missing half the story. It didn't matter. They had fun anyway.

And then they were at the cheesy finale.

"A Christmas without love... is not a Christmas at all," Yosuke and Kichirou quoted.

"The end," Yosuke said after. "What'd you think, partner?"

"That was pretty cute," Souji conceded.

"Yeah!" said Kichirou. He looked up at Souji. "Can we watch it again?"

Yosuke saw the mischievous glint in his son's eyes and almost laughed. Oh, he knew Souji didn't care for Featherman. He knew exactly what he was doing.

"Maybe," Souji promised cheerfully. "But now... it's about time for bed, hmm?"

"Already?" Kichirou made a pouty face.

"Let him stay up a little more," Yosuke said. "It's Christmas, after all."

"Yay," Kichirou cheered. "Oh, can we have hot chocolate?"

"Good idea," said Yosuke.

"Is this another Hanamura family tradition?" Souji asked as they headed into the kitchen to make the drinks.

"Nah," Yosuke said. "But we can make it one, along with your mintoballs."

Souji smiled at him, and Yosuke had a feeling that was going to be a promise.

The hot chocolate was just what a cold night asked for. Kichirou put too many marshmallows in his, leaving him without much to drink, and Souji put a mintoball in his to give it a minty flavor. Yosuke didn't get fancy and just drank his straight.

They were enjoying their drinks in the living room when Kichirou said, "Dad, I think... you should look out the window."

"Huh?" Yosuke looked towards the window. Since it was night, there wasn't much to see except the outdoor lights from the home across the street.

"No," Kichirou said. "Go over to the window, and look out." He grinned. "You too, Uncle Seta!"

Yosuke glanced at Souji, who was hiding a smile behind his hand. He knew what this was about. Yosuke didn't, though, so he just shrugged and followed Souji to the window.

He looked outside, straining his eyes. Maybe Ki-kun and Souji had made a snowman or something out there? He couldn't see anything of the sort.

Souji tapped his shoulder. Yosuke looked and found that Souji was was pointing a finger straight up. Yosuke followed the direction it was pointing. Right over the window, someone had put mistletoe.

Yosuke began to say "Really?" but then Souji was kissing him, sealing the words forever. The faint taste of mint was left on Yosuke's lips.

"H-hey," Yosuke protested when Souji drew back, his face warmer than the hot chocolate had been.

Souji's eyes were half-lidded, his smile serene. His hands held Yosuke's lightly between them. "Merry Christmas," he said.

"Yeah..." Yosuke said. "Merry Christmas."

They looked into each others eyes for a long moment, hardly blinking.

"Was this Ki-kun's idea?" Yosuke murmured. "The mistletoe?"

"You know it," Souji murmured back.

Yosuke only took an art class in college for some easy elective credits. When he found out they were going to do an anatomy study with live nude models, he was ecstatic. Finally he could see a naked girl without any obligation!

But as it turned out, of course they'd start with male models first.

With an aura of dread, Yosuke followed his classmates into the modeling room. The center stage, where the model would soon be, was surrounded by a semi-circle of chairs and drawing easels. Yosuke took a seat at random. It didn't really matter, his mood wasn't going to be improved by a better view.

He glanced at his classmates, wondering if they felt the same as he did about this. Most of them were getting their charcoal ready or looking bored. There was a cute girl in the corner who looked nervous, but her friend assured her that she'd get over the awkwardness fast.

Like hell, Yosuke thought. He wasn't sure how you were supposed to 'get over' a naked man in the room. What if it was an old guy? He'd heard horror stories about saggy old hags doing perverted poses, but the same could happen with a male model too. A pruny old man obscenely spreading his spindly legs apart and giving the college age girls suggestive looks—

Speak of the devil, a gray-haired man in a brown robe was now walking to the stage. Before Yosuke could process it, the old man was shedding his robe.

Oh god, he really was naked. Yosuke fixed his gaze above the old man's head and muttered a curse at Chie for telling him to take this stupid class.

"All right," said the professor, "we will start with 5 minute poses. Seta, whenever you're ready you may pose."

Yosuke didn't intend to see what pose the old man—Seta?— took, but the sound of several charcoals on paper made him rethink that. The professor was already walking around, prepared to give the students advice, and he couldn't have nothing drawn or he'd be drawing her attention instead.

He finally looked at the man, focusing on his face. As it turned out, despite the gray hair, Seta wasn't old at all. In fact, he looked about his own age. Yosuke sighed in relief.

Seta had a pretty face, for a guy, round but not pudgy and with a strong enough chin. His gray eyes were unfocused as he sat crosslegged with his hands in his lap. He was in good shape too. Yosuke noticed this without looking... there. He was muscular but not ridiculously buff and was that a big scar on his chest? Yosuke wondered where that came from before remembering that he was supposed to be drawing.

Yosuke barely got the roughest outline of the man's torso and crossed legs when the first 5 minutes were up. He flipped to the next page in the sheaf and started the process all over again as Seta moved into a new pose.

Seta began to kneel, one knee up and one knee down, which Yosuke was thankful for because from this angle, one knee was blocking the, uh, essentials. Yosuke quickly sketched an outline of the man's body. The curve of his back was totally wrong, but this whole exercise was intended as practice. When the professor came by, she corrected the way he held the charcoal and told him to draw from his elbow for the next sketch.

In the next pose, Seta sat back with one leg in the air, like he was kicking something. It kinda reminded Yosuke of Chie. He thought it was a pretty good pose for practice, since it allowed him to draw that slender leg. Knees were harder to draw than he'd expected. He didn't end up drawing more than the leg before time ran out.

After that, Seta bent forward, like he was about to start a sprint. Since his head was bowed, his hair fell forward. Yosuke spent more attention to detail on this than the pose itself, leading the professor to chide him. Texture studies were something they'd do another day.

For the next pose, Seta rested on both knees and held his arms up, like he was reaching some low-hanging fruit. That's what Yosuke imagined anyway, because there was nothing to block that 'something else' that was hanging from view. Yosuke totally avoided looking at it.

A movement caught Yosuke's eye. He must've made a sound or something, because for some reason Seta was looking at him. Yosuke hurriedly hid behind his easel and tried drawing the arms from memory. When the professor came by, she praised his work but said he should've drawn the body before the arms. Creating the core afterward would be counterproductive.

When she walked away, Yosuke peeked out behind the easel. Seta was doing a stretch between poses. The motion was fluid; he took his arms all the way up over his head and laced his fingers together, yawning quietly. Yosuke could imagine if he was wearing clothes, the shirt would ride up and show some skin. He wondered vaguely why that vision was so exciting compared to his nudity here and now.

What did he wear normally anyway? Was he a t-shirt and jeans sort of guy? Somehow Yosuke doubted it. More importantly, did he prefer boxers or briefs?

Seta's next pose had him flexing his arm. Yosuke snickered, because he didn't actually have much of a bicep to show off. Seta heard him, though. He couldn't turn his head in this pose, but his eyes were definitely aimed at him. Embarrassed, Yosuke pretended to focus on his easel. Geez, he didn't want a naked man's attention, even if he was attractive. Under any other circumstance, Yosuke would be glad to try and make a new friend, but this was hardly normal!

But he was curious about the guy now. He wondered if he was a student. Did he use the college's gym? Maybe if he ran into him there, they could chat or...

Heck, what did Seta's voice sound like? He hadn't said a word this whole time. Yosuke supposed he didn't need to speak, he just needed to stand there and look pretty, but it made him feel more like an object than a person, even if that was the point.

Thinking of it that way, it was kind of sad. This guy was exposing himself for what? Money? Yosuke couldn't imagine he was being paid well, and this wasn't an experience he could well forget, voluntary or not. Yosuke knew if he was the model, he'd be having nightmares for months after. But... he'd always been shy about his body. It had been hard enough for him to wear his swim trunks to the beach without wearing a shirt too. Seta must be strong in ways beyond physical.

Crap, the professor was coming his way, and, lost in thought, he hadn't drawn anything for the current pose. He quickly sketched a poor facsimile of Seta doing the Oscar statue pose. The professor only gave it a passing glance before heading to the stage.

The professor nodded at Seta then turned to face the class. "Good job, class," she said. "You've already made a lot of improvement in just an hour. However..."

She glanced around the room, pausing as her eyes alighted on different students. Yosuke shrank in his seat when she glared at him too.

"There is a vital piece of anatomy that many of you are skipping out on," she continued. "You know what I'm talking about."

Dammit! Yosuke'd thought he'd be able to get through this without... actually acknowledging the elephant trunk in the room, as it were. Let alone drawing it.

Heaving a heavy sigh, he finally lowered his gaze and took a good long look at Seta's...........

Yosuke couldn't help but blush. It wasn't like he'd never looked in a mirror after taking a shower, but... to see someone else's... and on display like this! It was weird, wasn't it?

He was staring. Crap, was it rude to stare?

Seta shifted from one foot to the other. When Yosuke finally tore his gaze away, he found Seta grinning at him.

Yosuke opened his mouth to say something—

Yosuke was lying on his back on his bed in the dark. It wasn't an unusual occurrence these days. Third year was proving to be as stressful as everyone had warned him. With all the homework he had, his dad had even reduced his hours at Junes.

But schoolwork wasn't what was was causing him to stare at the ceiling with his mind reeling and his heart racing. It was something else entirely. And the closer he came to the conclusion, the more he broke out into a cold sweat.

He'd honestly been trying to ignore it, but after today... he couldn't.

Before he could stop himself, he called his best friend, Souji. "Y-yo, partner..." he said in a shaky voice when the phone picked up.

"Yosuke? Is everything all right?"

Yosuke wanted to laugh. Trust Souji to zoom in on his hesitation. "No," he answered with full honesty. "I really need to talk to you."

"...Yeah?"

Yosuke rubbed his face. "I don't even know where to start."

"Start with what's first on your mind," Souji suggested.

He took a deep breath, trying to psych himself up. "So, Chie invited me to a basketball game today. That kid that sits behind her was like 'Oh is it a date?' but no, I definitely don't feel that way about her. I mean, could you imagine that? Me and Chie?"

"Not really," Souji said.

"A-anyway, I guess she'd planned to go with Ichijo, but something happened and he'd bailed. No one else was interested, so she'd turned to me." Yosuke began to warm up to the topic. It was easy to keep going now that he'd started. "So we go to the game. It's some college game all the way over in Okina. They're professionals. They even have cheerleaders."

"Cheerleaders, huh? Sounds like you had fun."

"Well, the cheerleaders are supposed to be distracting, right? To make the other team fail their plays, I guess. I mean, they were there and all, but... I don't know, I just kept noticing how on both teams, those basketball players had some really short shorts on. That was way more distracting."

"The better to move around in, I suppose," Souji said.

"Never really noticed a guy's calves before," Yosuke admitted. "Actually, that's a lie, I noticed back when—but a-anyway," he rallied on, "You ever notice how tall basketball players are? And sometimes, when they throw the ball, they're so graceful about it. It was almost like a dance. Ichijo really missed out."

"What about Chie?" Souji asked.

Yosuke blinked. "What about her?" He paused. "Oh yeah, she was there too. I don't know. I don't think she noticed. Oh, actually, after the game... her scooter broke down, so she had to ride with me on mine."

"Oh," Souji said in a knowing tone of voice. "So it finally happened."

Yosuke sighed. "Yeah, yeah. The up close and personal plan. It wasn't that great."

"Why not?" Souji asked. "Because it was Chie?"

"Maybe," Yosuke said. "But I think... it'd be the same with any girl. Do you remember when we first got our scooters? And then mine got crushed and I had to ride with Kanji? I hated it at the time. But looking back, it wasn't so bad."

"Kanji is a good guy," Souji said.

"He really is." Yosuke sighed. "He was really nice about it, you know? He made me hold on tight so I wouldn't fall off when we headed down a hill. I thought for sure he'd get tired with my extra weight, but he wasn't fazed at all."

"You don't weigh much," Souji teased.

"Come on, I don't weigh nothing!" Yosuke shook his head instinctively, though he knew Souji couldn't see it. "But yeah, Kanji is strong, but you know what the kicker is? He's so soft. He likes kids and makes all those cute toys for them. And even though Teddie is all 'don't touch my fur!' he doesn't hold it against him. Doesn't that make him pretty amazing?"

"He is a good guy," Souji repeated. "But why are you saying this now?"

"I'm trying to tell you!" Yosuke said, beginning to sweat. "I've been noticing it more now. When guys are, you know. Being strong. But also soft." He waited for an answer, but when there was nothing, he filled the silence. "W-when they take time to style their hair. When they smile with their teeth and you can really feel it. When their clothes fit just right. I'm noticing all these things. And I think... I always did, but I just ignored it."

"Go on," Souji said softly.

"Because... guys aren't supposed to notice these things about other guys, right? Girls can compliment girls and it doesn't mean anything, but for us, it's... weird." Yosuke sighed. "Now I see why Kanji hated those words. 'Weird' and 'strange' and... 'different.' But if it's weird, why does it feel like it happens naturally?"

"Yosuke..."

After that, Yosuke waited with bated breath for Souji's response. He'd all but spelled out what he'd meant with all this. Though, on second thought, maybe it wasn't so clear. It had all made sense in his head, but he could see now that he'd been rambling. If Souji didn't get it, then he just had to say it.

"S-Souji," Yosuke said. His throat closed up then, forcing him to choke out his next words. "I... I'm gay."

There. He'd said it. It was out there, and he couldn't take it back.

Silence followed. Souji was still there, Yosuke could hear him breathing. But he wasn't saying a word. Yosuke's pride in having finally said it rapidly evaporated. Why the silence? Of all his friends, Souji was the only one he trusted with this. The one he felt needed to know, even if it would affect their friendship. Would it affect their friendship? The cold sweat returned. What if—

"Thank you for telling me," Souji said. There was a short pause. "I know it isn't easy..." Another pause. "I'm sorry. That silence went on a little too long, didn't it?"

"N-No, I'm fully aware that I need to learn patience—wait," Yosuke said, "What do you mean you know?"

"Because... I do," Souji said simply.

"You... so you..."

"Yeah."

"Huh." Slowly, Yosuke began to smile. If Souji was gay too, then... it was all okay. He relaxed as a profound sense of relief flooded through him.

Short-lived relief, anyway. Because if Souji was gay too, then... then every stupid thing... everything he did and said that hurt Kanji, every thoughtless comment...

It hurt him too...

"I'm sorry," Yosuke said.

"I'm sorry, too."

"Huh? What are you sorry for? I—"

"I could have told you," Souji said. "Helped you."

"Souji..."

Another silence followed. Yosuke felt tears in his eyes. He managed to blink them away.

"I was such a dumbass..." he said.

"Don't say that."

"Well, don't say you're sorry either!" Yosuke said. "You can still help me. You can always help me."

"I think," Souji said slowly, "we can help each other."

Yosuke took a moment to process that. "Y-yeah... we can. Promise?"

"I promise," said Souji. "Now..."

He trailed off. "What?" Yosuke prompted.

"Here," said Souji with poorly-concealed excitement. "This is what I wanted to show you."

Yosuke appraised the side alley that Souji had led him to. When they'd got off the train at Yongen-Jaya, Yosuke hadn't known what to expect. He'd never been in this part of Tokyo before. It was an older area, primarily residential, with lots of wooden homes built nearly on top of each other. There were a few antique shops that gave off a vintage feel.

Anyway, Souji was looking at the coffee shop to his left (though Yosuke spied a sign past it for hot baths that they could totally hit up later). It looked cozy, he guessed. The potted plants outside were well-tended. He read the name of the shop on the awning over the door. "Leblanc, huh?"

"You aren't supposed to pronounce the 'c'," Souji told him.

"Leblan? Now I'm thinking of my grandma's flan..." Yosuke made a face. "I didn't think you were into coffee. Oh, but you do have your own mug at Dojima's place, don't you?"

"The coffee's pretty good," Souji said, "but that's not the best thing about this place. Let's go in."

A bell jingled when they opened the door. The aroma of coffee hit Yosuke full force, making him strongly desire one all of a sudden. It took a moment for his eyes to adjust from being outside. The wall behind the bar housed a wide variety of bags of coffee beans. Yosuke wondered vaguely if they had that stuff made of civet dung.

"I'll be right there," said a man's voice from the back.

Souji sat at the bar and patted the stool next to him. Yosuke joined him there with a grin. He'd been hoping they'd sit at the bar instead of any of the booths. They could hold hands a lot easier seated next to each other like this, which Yosuke immediately instigated. Souji's hands were always so soft now that they weren't fighting in the TV World. He loved that he could do this.

A middle-aged man in a pink shirt and a black work apron came out from the back area. Yosuke assumed he was the cafe's owner. "Oh, it's you again," the man said. "Welcome back. What'll it be today?"

Souji ordered a mocha. Yosuke couldn't help but tease him. "Really? Chocolate in your coffee?"

"I like it," Souji murmured, turning his eyes down.

"Better than an affogato," the cafe owner said conversationally. "Though I serve it, I've never quite understood the appeal. Anyway, I'll have it ready for you in a moment. Is your friend having anything?"

"Do you serve, uh... not coffee?" Yosuke asked. Now that he'd become accustomed to the scent, he didn't crave coffee anymore. Besides, he knew the caffeine would be bad for him. "Like a chai tea?"

The man lifted his head to give him the most disdainful look. "I might be able to scrounge something up," he said. He headed into the back, apparently to do just that.

"That guy kinda reminds me of your uncle," Yosuke whispered.

Souji shook his head. "He's harmless. Well, so is my uncle."

"You're forgetting the time your uncle took out a creep during the LMB Festival. I mean, I didn't see it but I heard everyone talking about it."

"Harmless," Souji repeated, squeezing his hand. "You'll see why soon."

"I'll trust you," Yosuke said.

They shared a quiet moment after that. Yosuke had some fun reading the names of the types of coffee beans available. Monsooned Malabar, Eugenioide, Pacamara Petite...

"Oh!" Yosuke said as an idea came to him. "If we kiss after this, I wonder if you'll taste like chocolate?"

"I'll taste like mocha," Souji corrected. "There's espresso with the chocolate. And if you're having chai, I think I'll pass. I don't like cinnamon."

Yosuke deflated. "Really? Dammit..."

While Yosuke was silently berating himself the man came out with their drinks. Souji's was definitely a coffee—it was the right color and the mug was steaming, but Yosuke's was green, not at all what he expected.

The man correctly interpreted his look. "I made you some matcha green tea. You didn't seem to care what you got, as long as it wasn't coffee, right? This should fit the bill."

"Matcha is better than cinnamon," Souji said, nudging him gently with an elbow.

As that, Yosuke grinned. "It's perfect, thanks!"

While they enjoyed their drinks, the owner told them a little about different types of coffee beans. Sure enough, they did have some dung-based beans in the cafe. He pointed them out when Yosuke asked.

The man gave them the bill when they were done, then moved to the sink to start cleaning some dishes.

"That was pretty good," Yosuke said. "But you said the coffee wasn't the best thing about the place. Did you mean the atmosphere? It is pretty nice. I think they should serve food."

"They do serve a mean curry," Souji said. "but actually..." He raised his voice to address the owner. "Sojiro-san, is Morgana in?"

"I knew you'd ask," Sojiro said, shaking his head with a wry smile. He called towards the attic stairs at the back of the store. "Hey, come down here, and bring Morgana!"

A couple of minutes later, a teenager wearing a stylish black and red high school uniform came down the stairs. He took in the scene with a bored expression, but rolled his eyes when he saw Souji. With a sigh he took down the duffel bag he carried and opened it up.

Out came a black cat, who... didn't seem all that happy to see Souji.

Not that Souji noticed. "Kitty..." he cooed, letting go of Yosuke's hand to offer it to the cat to sniff.

"I should have known," Yosuke said with a heavy sigh.

"A cafe isn't complete without a resident cat," Souji said.

The cat howled at that, as if it disagreed.

"I should charge an extra fee to see the cat," Sojiro said when the cat quieted down. "All right, that's probably enough."

Souji waved goodbye when the teenager took the cat back upstairs.

After that they paid the bill. When they went outside, Yosuke stretched. Going from the muted cafe lighting to the bright sunshine made him feel like he needed to move around.

Then he sighed. "I can't believe I'm jealous of a cat," he said.

"Don't be," Souji said.

"Why not? You came all this way out here for that."

"Yeah, but..." Souji hesitated before growing a playful grin. "You're the only one I want to mix mocha and matcha with."

"What do you mean..." Yosuke began, and then it dawned on him. It helped that Souji kept raising his barely-visible eyebrows up at him suggestively. "Oh. Well." Yosuke coughed, then glanced around. "Maybe we should uh... find a darker alley?"